New to goats, couple questions?

[stifflej]

Hi all, I am new to goats, just purchased these 3 yesterday, and have a couple questions for all of you goat geniuses.

First, I do not know the breed, here is a pic, I did not buy the buck, just the nanny and 2 kids.



Not sure if the pic is good enough, but can you get an idea how old the kids are? my guess is they are old enough to be weened, and if so, do I need to seperate them, or will mom ween them?

Thanks all.

[Alice In TX/MO]

First, welcome to the goat forum. Welcome to the wacky world of goats.

Now..... did you get these at auction? If so, the odds are against them being healthy.

They need to be treated for worms. Get a tube of Quest horse wormer. Dose with 1 cc per 100 pounds of goat.

They need to be blood tested for CAE.

You need to feel them all over, looking for lumps that can be abscesses due to CL.

From the angle of the pic, it's hard to tell leg length, but I'm guessing they are something crossed with Nigerian Dwarf.

[stifflej]

I did get them from an auction, I did get wormer last night, did check for lumps, didn't find any, and am going to give them thier CD&T vacine this weekend. I will look into the CAE test, will do a little research then make sure I get one done. They are small, some type of dwarf. My first thought was pygmy, but you all would know better. Thanks for the reply, and more good info would be appriciated.

[wintrrwolf]

What Alice says
That buck and the kids look meaty or should I say well rounded. It is hard to tell from the pic, nice horn growth on that white kid can't tell on the other kid, in the pic they look short... Pygmy cross?

[stifflej]

The all white one is a male, and does have more horn growth than the one with black strip (female). The mother may be 2ft at the top of her back, maybe a inch or two shorter. In the process of ordering the CAE test kit. If they would be positive for CAE, is there a treatment? Thanks.

[Alice In TX/MO]

The only treatement for CAE is putting the goat down and starting over with tested goats. Sorry if that sounds harsh, but really, it's the only way.

CAE and CL are the main reasons NOT to buy at auctions.

[TRAILRIDER]

I know you can't tell much from the pictures, and you cant see CAE or CL in a picture either. But they look like well cared for, pretty little goats.

[Pirri]

On the CD&T vaccine, If the goats got there first dose in June and never got the booster 4 weeks later it is now august what should I do?

[Backfourty,MI.]

Originally Posted by Pirri

On the CD&T vaccine, If the goats got there first dose in June and never got the booster 4 weeks later it is now august what should I do?

You will need to start over with the 2 shot series, 21 days apart.

[mygoat]

Those look like miniature goats of various heritage. Nigerians and Pygmies are the same genetic stock originally, but selection has produced the Nigerian. The buck looks like a regular non-bred-to-standard 'pygmy' buck. doe and kids likely as well. They are marked like pygmies.

Congrats on first goats. What are your goals with them? Unregistered 'pygmies' are a dime-a-dozen but they got me started and interested in goats. I used mine for meat, they're quite meaty little critters and hardy as all heck, at least mine are. In fact, I still have the original 3 as pets - including my first ever goat who is now 12 years old and she's still a spitfire. They are the lowest maintenance of all of my livestock, despite being geriatric.

I did want to say that if that buckling is old enough, move him and that buck to a new pen. That doeling could get pregnant now (as young as 12 weeks is possible! but NOT good for them AT ALL) and that doe could get rebred. Not having a duedate is not fun especially if they would be due in January. Pygmies are notorious for kidding problems and you'll want to be there for kiddings if possible. I strongly suggest pen breeding when the does come into heat (and once that doeling is old enough), or using a marking harness on the buck during the breeding season to know when the does are bred. I wouldn't breed that doeling until she's several months old.

[stifflej]

No big plans, mostly as pets now. Plan on selling the young billy I have, and replace with a non-related one, and hopefully have some babies on the farm in the spring. Once we get comfortable with them, maybe our plans will change. Thanks all for your responses.

[mygoat]

I'd move the buck and keep that buckling as a wether companion if you don't want to use him.

Wait 30 days after you move the bucks and pull blood on the does to test for pregnancy. IMO you will want to know if you're expecting kids in the middle of winter. Preg tests are like 6.00 each and that's cheap considering if that doeling's bred you could give her a shot of lutelyse and make her lose the pregnancy, which is the safest thing for her.

[LomahAcres]

I would also recommend you do a pregnancy test in one month on the doe and doe kid- being in with a buck at the auction and with buck kid could mean babies on the way.